Judgement Day Arc

The Judgement Day Arc (断罪の時編, Danzai no Toki-hen) is the fifty-fourth story arc in the series and the eighth in the Bold Retirement Saga.

Ippo watches as the boxers of the his generation continue moving forward. Mashiba challenges for the world title match. He challenges the WBC lightweight world champion Marcus Rosario from Puerto Rico. Rosario, known as the "The Bad Boy of Puerto Rico" (プエルトリコの悪童, Pueruto Riko no Akudō), is a violent man who uses the southpaw stance and specialises in in-fighting. Takamura also defends his WBC super middleweight title for the first time, Kimura and Itagaki fights in their matches as well. Sendō begins preparing for the WBA featherweight title match against the world champion Ricardo with the help of Miyata.

Summary[]

Souvenirs from Mexico[]

Made in Abyss themed masks — Itagaki, Taihei, and Kintarō wearing *Made in Abyss* themed wrestling masks.

While Ippo talks with Kumi, Itagaki, Taihei, and Kintarō, he mentions how his visit in Mexico left him heated up to the point where he couldn't stand it anymore and had to get it handled when he came back to Japan. Kumi claims she would have handled it for him, creating a misunderstanding. Kumi explains she means that since Mexican food can be very spicy, she would cook Ippo some light Japanese food. Itagaki thinks Ippo means that the boxing there got him heated up, and Taihei and Kintarō adds that he must have thought he wanted to fight too. Kumi glares at the three, which Itagaki explains to Taihei and Kintarō that Kumi gets irritated when someone talks like that. Ippo gives everyone masks he got from Mexico, and gives Kumi a mask for her brother so they can have matching masks. Ippo, Kumi, Itagaki, Taihei, and Kintarō goes to the Makunouchi Fishing Boat to eat the dinner Hiroko made.

Aoki, Kimura, and Takamura sparring while blinded.

At the Kamogawa gym, Takamura is in the ring in his underwear while wearing a mask from Ippo backwards. Takamura tells Aoki and Kimura to wear the masks Ippo got them and get into the ring, as he wants to train them on their wildness since they must have seen that wildness is important after watching the match between Wally and Ricardo. Aoki and Kimura gets into the ring while wearing their masks backwards. Takamura tells them to fight with the fear of not seeing to polish their wildness, to not think, but feel, and when they feel, punch. Aoki and Kimura remember that their reason of starting boxing was to land a punch on Takamura's face, feeling like it is a once-in-a-lifetime chance now. Aoki and Kimura plans to come at Takamura by relying on his sound since he is heavier than them, and they know that he is right in front of them. Takamura tells them to spin in a circle ten times. After all three spin, the training begins. The spar between Takamura, Kimura, and Aoki, who are all blindfolded by their masks, begins. Aoki and Kimura wishes to finally accomplish their eternal goal of landing a punch on Takamura's face. The three boxers have trouble finding each other until Takamura launches a huge punch near Aoki, grazing his ear. Aoki starts flailing his fists trying to hit Takamura, but ends up hitting Shinoda, who pulls both of their masks off their head. Aoki and Kimura get angry when they realise that Takamura stepped out of the ring during the spar to do mitt practice with Kamogawa. Ippo watches from outside the gym with Taihei and Kintarō, deciding that they shouldn't enter the gym right now and instead go running again.

The Movements of Everyone Around Him[]

Taihei and Kintarō excited about Ippo letting them take on the pro test.

While doing roadwork, Taihei and Kintarō claim that they have something to tell Ippo. Taihei and Kintarō tells Ippo how they have been having an easier time training, and their confidence has improved as well. The two students express their desire to take the pro test to become pro boxers. Ippo, reluctant at first, decides to go through with their request, making the duo excited. Ippo wonders why they are so excited about it, but remembers he was the same way, thinking that the door to a gym is like a gateway to another dimension. Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō run to the Kamogawa gym to ask Kamogawa and Yagi about the pro test. When they arrive, they see Kamogawa punishing Takamura for acting up. At the Naniwa Boxing Club, Mari interviews Sendō about his upcoming match against Ricardo. Sendō claims he will win by knockout, which Mari questions him if he can see a path that leads to victory against an invincible champion. Sendō answers that everyone who lost to Ricardo showed him the path, and that "undefeated" doesn't mean "invincible," it just means he hasn't faced him yet. At the Tōhō gym, Fujii asks Mashiba of his thoughts about the unofficial offer for a world title match, believing that since the champion is strong, he must be already researching him. Mashiba ignores him. Fujii begins to ask another question, but he gets cut off by Mashiba, who tells him to be quiet and just watch him.

Ippo realising that it is only him not moving.

At the Kamogawa gym, Fujii and Mari tells the gym members about Mashiba and Sendō's comments about their upcoming world title matches. Takamura states that Mashiba and Sendō are strong, but they are still small fries, as to become a world champion, one needs a certain panache and a vessel large enough to contain it, revealing his vessel as his genitalia. Kamogawa whacks his vessel with his cane and scolds him for speaking ill towards boxers from other gyms. As Fujii asks Kamogawa what his gym's next event it, Kamogawa reveals that Takamura is doing his first WBC super middleweight title defence, while Kimura and Itagaki are the undercards. Aoki wonders when his next match is. Shinoda explains that he reserved a spot for him at the Kōrakuen Hall for another day as the gym is negotiating with the high ranked JBC boxers so that Aoki can quickly take the top spot for a rematch against Iga. Taihei and Kintarō tells the reporters that they got some stuff coming up as well, however, Fujii and Mari don't know who the two are. Ippo is amazed as it feels like everything is moving all of a sudden with the whole landscape consisting of multiple boxers changing. Ippo was about to punch a sandbag before stopping and realising that it is only him who isn't moving.

Fujii and Mari talking about Sendō and Mashiba's upcoming world title matches.

Fujii and Mari leave the gym, and as they walk away, they wonder how Ippo is feeling about watching the boxers he fought taking on the world. Fujii feels as if Ippo's time hasn't truly stopped. Mari decides to talk about Mashiba and Sendō, which Fujii believes that no one knows what would happen if Sendō lands one punch on Ricardo, however, Ricardo is the worst matchup due to him being the most masterful boxer in history. Mari claims how Mashiba's opponent is an in-fighter who made Juan struggle. Fujii notes that Mashiba's next opponent is evil and does anything to win, including committing fouls. He adds that while Sawamura was evil too, he was national level, however, Mashiba's opponent supposedly committed every crime but murder, but even murder is not out of the question, making him world level evil. Mari wonders if the match has been arranged yet. Fujii answers that it would be if Mashiba's next opponent, Marcus Rosario from Puerto Rico wasn't in prison.

Marcus Rosario - The Bad Boy of Puerto Rico[]

Kamogawa gym members talking about Marcus — Kamogawa gym members talking about Rosario.

At the Kamogawa gym, Aoki explains to his gym mates how Rosario is known as the strongest in his weight class. Takamura comments how he doesn't like how Aoki is saying "his" weight class as if he is in the same league as the world champion. Aoki claims he is ranked third in the JBC, adding that it is a big deal, however, Takamura mocks him by telling Aoki to beat Rosario then, before adding that he can't since he doesn't have a world ranking, causing Aoki to apologise. Since Rosario's surname, "Rosario" (ロザリオ, Rozario) is spelt the same as "Rosary" in Japanese, Itagaki wonders if he carries a rosary with him. Ippo reveals Rosario's boxing record, style, and age to his gym mates. Aoki and Kimura asks Ippo about Rosario's three no contests and two losses, which Ippo explains that his opponents got too bloodied to continue after headbutting occurred. Ippo adds that Rosario is a southpaw in-fighter, which makes it easy for headbutting to happen, and when he watched the tapes, he couldn't tell if it was on accident or not. He doesn't want to think Rosario did it on purpose but he notes that Fujii called him the "the bad boy of Puerto Rico."

Marcus holding a gun — Rosario holding a gun.

In Puerto Rico, Rosario is inside a building pointing a gun outside the window after being annoyed by a dog's barking. His manager tells him that he can't do that as there are people around, and if he fires a round, the police will arrive, reminding him that he is the world champion. Rosario tells him that he is being loud as well, aiming the gun at him and firing a shot. Rosario states that he missed, as the bullet landed on a picture of Mashiba. After Rosario shot his gun past his manager, he scolds him for trying to shoot him. Rosario claims he was aiming behind him, but it wasn't an easy target. Rosario punches at the picture of Mashiba on the wall until his manager stops him, not wanting him to hurt his fist. Rosario orders his manager to bring Mashiba to him quickly, as he wants to wreck his happiness.

Kumi-sama: Love is War[]

Ippo and Kumi about to kiss as fireworks bloom.

At the Mashiba residence, Kumi remembers a conversation she had with Tomiko at work about how she shouldn't be unhappy, as she should be happy with Ippo, who is now retired and has nothing to do, and may as well pick her. Kumi feels as if she will grow old without making any progress, but gets excited when she realises that since Mashiba is at training camp for the week, it will just be her and Ippo, who she invited, alone. Ippo arrives at her house with a container of fish for dinner as fireworks start nearby. As Ippo finds out that Mashiba isn't home, and the two hear the fireworks, Ippo gets nervous, while Kumi turns off the lights for them to watch the fireworks. When they look at each other, they move closer and are about to kiss until Ippo stops as he sees Mashiba outside. As Kumi cherishes the moment, she notices Ippo stopping himself from kissing her and asks him what's wrong. Ippo thinks he saw someone looking at them outside. The two decide to check outside the next time the fireworks bloom to see if anyone is there. When it happens, they see that no one is outside. As Ippo was about to tell her something, the fireworks bloom, and Ippo gets scared as he sees the same person outside again. Kumi doesn't see anyone there and tells Ippo to calm down and wonders if everything is going to stay the same between them since Ippo is always scared. As they are about to kiss again, the fireworks bloom, and this time, Ippo gets scared as he sees a group of people looking at them from outside. Kumi claims that it is all in his head and comments how something always gets in their way as if Ippo is fixated on things going wrong.

Mashiba making Ippo and Kumi nervous as he came home early.

Kumi decides to turn on the lights to see if it helps as she suggests for Ippo to take deep breaths and calm down. The two then become horrified when they notice that Mashiba has been in the living room with them for some time. As Ippo and Kumi wonder why Mashiba is back early from his training camp, Mashiba explains that there was a food poisoning outbreak there, so everyone left early to disinfect the area. Ippo is worried about Mashiba's condition due to the food poisoning, which Mashiba notes that he feels like he is going to puke because of seeing Ippo's face. Outside the Mashiba residence, Takamura, Aoki, Kimura, and Itagaki watch what is happening inside, and are disappointed that nothing happen between Ippo and Kumi despite Aoki's report that it should have been a night of love. Mashiba asks Ippo what he planned on doing with her tonight. Kumi tells Mashiba to stop talking to Ippo so menacingly as she tries to calm Ippo down. Mashiba sees Ippo and Kumi close to each other, and claims he will calm down as well since he has something to say. Mashiba tells Ippo that he was slated for the death penalty for what he mistakenly said he was going to do to Kumi, but he is still alive because there is a compromise. Mashiba tells Ippo how ever since their parents died, he has desperately trying to look out for her, however, she is also an adult, so she no longer needs him to look after her anymore, as doing anything else is just being overprotective. Mashiba adds that he knew the time would come for him to entrust her to someone else, however, the condition for that is that the man needs to be stronger than him. Mashiba notes that he hates Ippo, but he also was defeated by him, so that is why he will compromise with him by having a discussion with him as Kumi's older brother.

Mashiba asking Ippo the five things he likes about Kumi.

Mashiba claims he has two or three questions for Ippo, with the first one being for him to name five things he likes about Kumi, but he has ten seconds to give the answers. Ippo gets stressed out by the question and ends up not giving an answer in the time it took Mashiba to count to ten, causing Mashiba to tell Ippo to get out. Outside the house, Takamura, Aoki, and Kimura decides to leave as they believe nothing will happen tonight with Ippo and Kumi, but Itagaki stays, hoping to see some real development. Back inside the house, Kumi glares at Mashiba to force him to let Ippo have a second chance of answering the question. Ippo gets serious, taking off the weight straps on his wrists, and comes up with five answers of what he likes about Kumi. Mashiba gets irritated as Ippo only gave answers about her appearance, but Ippo claims it is just the lack of his vocabulary, and that it is not just about her appearance. Kumi comments to Mashiba that he is giving Ippo an unfair situation, wanting him to give Ippo something easier to answer.

Kumi yelling at Ippo and Mashiba — Ippo and Mashiba being yelled at by Kumi.

Mashiba decides to have Kumi ask Ippo a question, to which she asks Ippo what her favourite animal is. Ippo has trouble thinking what it could be, and answers that it is a cat. Kumi gets mad at Ippo for flunking the easy question as it is obvious that she likes dogs. Mashiba tells Ippo to get out as he has failed. Kumi yells at Mashiba asking him why does he get to decide that and questions why he is the one testing him. Kumi comments to Mashiba how he is always like this, as he made two boys at her school not talk to her after he messed with them in the past, ruining her social life, asking for him to please stop messing with her life. Ippo explains to Kumi that, from his experience with his mother, that Mashiba is doing everything for her sake, as he has dedicated a bulk of his life, time and effort for her, so he thinks that she can't blame him for that even if it might seem like he is going about it the wrong way. Mashiba agrees with Ippo, telling Kumi to apologise. As Kumi scolds Mashiba and Ippo, and Mashiba starts arguing with Ippo again, Kumi flips a table, causing a plate and mug to break a window. Itagaki thinks something big is happening inside. Itagaki is soon joined by Nanako, who also brought Taihei and Kintarō after she told the two that Ippo is in trouble. Itagaki tells the three to not get involved as it will just make things worse.

Ippo begins to leave, believing that nothing good can come of him staying. Mashiba goes outside with Ippo and gives him his wrist weight straps since he forgot them. Mashiba asks Ippo if he really has no regrets about boxing, noting how he still wears the weight straps and continuing his roadwork, making him no different than when he was active. Ippo explains that he is so used to wearing weight straps that he can't stop wearing them, and that he only is doing roadwork to run with his students. Mashiba asks again if he has any regrets, and Ippo quickly replies he doesn't. Mashiba mentions that while it is fine if that is how he feels, but Miyata won't accept it, asking if he is really okay not fighting him. Mashiba adds that Miyata, who was a top prospect is now just wandering like a a zombie, and wonders if deep down Ippo has regrets, which is why neither one of them can move on. Ippo glares at Mashiba and claims that they had countless chances to fight, which Mashiba thinks that Ippo wants to say that it is his fault. Mashiba claims that he fouled against Miyata on purpose, so he was the one who got in the way of their promise. As Ippo remembers what happened, he gets angry, but Mashiba apologises, shocking Ippo. Mashiba explains that all he could think about then was to become the world champion for Kumi's sake. Mashiba feels as if Kumi is the one taking care of him, which he believes is backwards, so he wants her to have no regrets by showing her the world's best brother. Mashiba notes that to become world champion, he needs to focus, so he asks Ippo to continue to put up with Kumi until he has the world champion belt around his waist. Ippo excitedly agrees and promises to cheer for him as well before running off in high spirits. Inside the house, Mashiba informs Kumi that Ippo and him has reached an accord. Mashiba thinks how the promise won't mean anything once he gets the title as there is no way he will ever recognise him.

Aoki and Kimura thinking how Ippo could handle counters and maneuver better if he returned — Aoki and Kimura thinking how Ippo could handle counters and manoeuvr better if he returned.

Later, Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō does roadwork while the three plan to cheer for Mashiba. Aoki and Kimura enters the Kamogawa gym and become amazed of Ippo's mitt practice with Taihei and Kintarō. Aoki and Kimura thinks that his sense of distance and rhythm is better than when he was active before, his knowledge of holding the mitts could make him handle counters better, and his manoeuvring could be better as well. After the mitt practice, Aoki and Kimura asks Ippo about him wearing Mashiba's Hell Society shirt. Ippo explains how he reached an accord with Mashiba which is why he is cheering for him with all he's got. Aoki and Kimura thinks that Mashiba's offer is too good, and is more like a dog being told to wait. Aoki and Kimura wonder where Takamura is, and Ippo claims that he is travelling again.

Sendō's Anti-Ricardo Weapon[]

Takamura arrives to the Naniwa Boxing Club.

At the Naniwa Boxing Club, Yanaoka holds Sendō back as his sparring partner is unable to continue. The Naniwa coach is stressed about Sendō having defeated four sparring partners in one day, as well as sparring against Hoshi for multiple days. The Naniwa coach is worried that Sendō's nerves are going to fry before he gets to his match against Ricardo as it looks like he has already put in the finishing touches. Sendō feels as if he is unable to keep his cool, as no matter how much he trains, it gets worse. Yanaoka tells the Naniwa coach how for Sendō, training is about shaving away at his humanity, where the more he shaves off, the more he returns to his wildness that can sniff things out like whether his opponent is above or below him, or the smells of life and death. Yanaoka thinks that because Sendō's opponent is Ricardo, he thinks that no matter what he does it might not be enough. Hoshi puts up a sign outside that says challengers are wanted. Almost immediately, two people show up to tell a rude comment about it, making Hoshi glare at them, causing them to leave. Hoshi tells Sendō that they weren't fit to be his sparring partner, as he needs something like an Ōzeki or a professional wrestler. Sendō claims that he isn't expecting someone like that, but he wants a big tough guy who can take two or three of his punches and get up once or twice. To everyone's shock, Takamura shows up.

Takamura comments how a sparring opportunity while he is travelling is convenient, and the sign outside claimed that anyone is fine. Sendō reminds Takamura that he is eight weight classes above him, being the three weight class conquering world champion. Takamura agrees that picking on small fry isn't befitting of a champion, making Sendō angry and the two get ready to spar. Sendō tells Yanaoka that it is the perfect time to try out his anti-Ricardo strategy, and if he can pull it off against Takamura, it will surely work on Ricardo. After being called to help Sendō, Miyata went to Osaka. However, upon arrival to the Naniwa Boxing Club he notices a sign outside the gym stating that any challengers are wanted, deciding to go back to Tokyo because a sign like that will only attract garbage, and him going inside will make it seem like he is the same kind of garbage. As he walks away, Miyata is surprised as he hears oversized garbage in the gym. Inside, as Sendō and Takamura waits for the gong to sound, Yanaoka tells the Naniwa coach that Takamura is wearing extra large gloves as a handicap and wishes to see if the anti-Ricardo weapon will work on someone like Takamura. Sendō plans to use his speed since he is lighter than Takamura, predicting that Takamura will be slow at the start since he believes he will win. When the spar begins, Sendō is surprised as Takamura dashes in faster than him, knocking his guard away with a left hook, then knocks Sendō down with a right hook. Yanaoka stops the spar immediately. Takamura tells Sendō that he is too weak to even count as training, so he is done even though Sendō wants to continue. Takamura mentions how when the first time Sendō came to the Kamogawa gym, he went down just like that.

Sendō gets irritated by Takamura's remarks towards him and begins attacking him. Sendō throws a Smash while thinking how he admits that the technique leaves him open, but Wally taught him what to do at the end of the opponent's dodge. When Takamura leans back to dodge the Smash, Sendō has his fist stuck out still in front of Takamura's face, blocking his eyesight. Sendō then moves his left fist away from Takamura's eyesight as a right comes towards the latter. Takamura barely dodged, but the right fist is now blocking his eyesight. As Sendō moves his right fist away, he is already throwing his Smash, which hits Takamura's face, as the latter did not see it in time. At the Kamogawa gym, Taihei is excited after landing a hit on Kimura while sparring. Kimura starts retaliating with a barrage of punches. Ippo tells him to stop, as he shouldn't go serious on someone who hasn't even debut, but Taihei claims that Kimura was pulling his punches. Kimura tells Ippo that he isn't so childish as to lose his cool after taking a hit.

Miyata begins training Sendō for his match against Ricardo — Sendō begins his training with Miyata.

At the Naniwa Boxing Club, Takamura loses his cool after taking the hit from Sendō, hitting him back as Hoshi and Yanaoka tries to hold him back. Yanaoka gets hit in the face by Takamura, causing Sendō to get angry and jump into the air to come down with a kick to Takamura's one-handed block. Miyata, who saw everything, calls Kamogawa to come get Takamura. As Takamura is about to leave, Miyata asks him if Sendō's strategy did damage. Takamura claims that it is incomplete, and that while using the Smash as a feint is good, the part that comes after is still weak. Takamura tells Miyata that he should help Sendō for the five days he is here. As Takamura leaves, Sendō gets irritated, but Miyata informs him that Takamura praised him. Miyata tells Sendō that it seems that stopping the Smash midway like he did puts a strain on his body, and the brief lag after he throws it gives a counter chance to his opponent. While Miyata doubts they can complete it in the short time he is there, they can still improve it to a point where Ricardo won't be insulted.

Kamogawa Gym Event - Main Event - WBC Super Middleweight World Title Match - Champion Mamoru Takamura (First Defence) VS. Challenger ??? (WBc Rank ?)/Semi-Final - Flyweight Preliminary World Title Match - ??? VS. ???/Undercard - Tatsuya Kimura VS ???/Undercard - Manabu Itagaki VS. ???[]

Takamura winning his first WBC super middleweight title defence match.

At the Kamogawa gym, the gym members welcome Kamogawa and Yagi back, however, Kamogawa immediately yells for Takamura, who is still away from the gym, as Kamogawa had to go to Osaka and do a dogeza as an apology due to Takamura's misbehaviour at the Naniwa Boxing Club. Three days later, Kamogawa is still angry as there is no sign of Takamura while three sparring partners from overseas are waiting for him. When Takamura enters the gym, Kamogawa scolds him and wonders if he stayed in shape for his upcoming match. Takamura answers by quickly defeating the three sparring partners. Later, the day of Itagaki, Kimura, and Takamura's matches arrive at the Ryōgoku Kokugikan. Itagaki wins by decision, Kimura's match ends in a draw, the flyweight world title preliminary match ends in a draw, and Takamura, who angers the crowd and Kamogawa with his fish costume made by Wataru, ends his first WBC super middleweight title defence match with a TKO in the third round. Watching on TV, Mashiba, who has a world title match in two months, and Sendō, who has a world title match in three months, both want a taste of the feeling of a world champion.

Ippo's Analysis[]

Ippo telling Miyata that his bravery as a boxer is something he trusts in.

Later, outside, Miyata approaches Ippo to tell him of his thoughts on Sendō facing Ricardo. Miyata claims that he trained and sparred with Sendō for five days. He adds that while Sendō's new weapon is formidable, there is not a scratch on his face. Ippo praises Miyata for avoid the punches of someone who is about to have a world title match, claiming that he could become a world champion if he keeps it up. Miyata tells Ippo that he wishes to refrain from challenging the WBA title, as wanting a world title and wanting to beat Ricardo are two different things. Miyata notes that Ricardo is essentially his improved form, as he is better than him in all aspects, so his chances of beating him is slim to none. Miyata asks Ippo if Sendō, whose punches couldn't reach him, stands any chance against Ricardo. Ippo believes the one with the best chance of beating Ricardo is Sendō. Ippo adds that he also believes Miyata and Ricardo have similar traits in their boxing styles, but the more they resemble each other the better the chance that Sendō could beat both of them. Ippo explains that the thing Miyata and Ricardo have in common is their heart. Ippo claims that dodging Sendō's punches must have took incredible effort and care, and that when Miyata is focused on defence, it is really hard to catch him. Miyata states that that is what makes it so simple, and that all he has to do is stay in low gear and cruise to an easy decision win. Ippo believes that it would not be like that, as Miyata has too much heart to be happy with a decision, so he will want to fight back and outfight him. Miyata asks Ippo if he really thinks an opponent who knows he can win by decision will purposely step in to an exchange of blows. Ippo believes he would, as his bravery as a boxer is something he trusts in.

Miyata wondering if this is really the perspective of a boxer who is committed to staying outside of the ring.

Miyata starts walking away, as he claims all he came for was to tell Ippo that he doesn't see Sendō winning. Ippo runs to Miyata to ask him if he is going back to Osaka to keep training with Sendō, to which Miyata answers that he is. Ippo is excited, as it means Sendō's chances will go up. Ippo starts telling Miyata more similarities between him and Ricardo. Miyata tells Ippo that he will fight him like a virtual Ricardo and asks if there is anything else on his mind. Ippo believes that Miyata and Sendō must be great friends since they are training together for a long time and must be talking about cats since they are cat people, irritating Miyata. Walking away, Miyata wonders if this is really the perspective of a boxer who is committed to staying outside of the ring, as Ippo showed a calm and precise analysis of everything. Watching from afar, Taihei and Kintarō guesses that Miyata is nice sometimes even if he seems real cold and Kumi hates him. Itagaki thinks on how Miyata's generation is peaking, but he is the only one stay stagnant. He wonders if Miyata keeps showing up like this in order to check something.

Ippo and Kumi talking about Mashiba's upcoming match against Marcus — Ippo and Kumi talking about Mashiba's upcoming match against Rosario.

As Ippo and Kumi fish, the latter comments to the former how whoever he marries won't have to worry about side dishes, but Ippo believes that person would get tired of only eating fish. Watching from afar, Taihei and Kintarō notices how Ippo's face gets red whenever he talks to Kumi and Miyata, wondering who his number one is. Ippo remembers what Mashiba told him the other night and wonders if Mashiba means that when he becomes world champion, he will give him permission to be with his sister. Kumi announces to Ippo what she wants to resolve herself and hear a professional's opinion of what Rosario is like. Ippo explains to her that there is no such thing as a weak world champion, so everyone challenging a them is in a fight of their lives. Having watched Rosario's videos many times, Ippo details that he can do almost anything, but at his core he is an in-fighter. He adds that his usual strategy is to rush towards his opponent, and while they are caught under that pressure, he breaks them down with brute force. He further adds that they both the exact opposite and worst match-up for each other, with Mashiba having the advantage at long range, and Rosario having an advantage at short range, the key will be the range and how long they can fight at their range. He believes that if Mashiba can keeps throwing jabs, he will be able to control the pace, but Rosario's step-in is incredibly strong and fast. Seeing Kumi looking down, Ippo claims that despite saying that it won't go smoothly, he still thinks Mashiba can win. Kumi just wants to know if Mashiba can come home safely, but Ippo states that he doesn't think that he can come back completely uninjured, but he believes he will come back as the world champion. Kumi tells Ippo that she wants to go to the ocean for a swim as she has a new swimsuit, asking him if he wants to take her there. Ippo happily agrees, believing that once Mashiba becomes world champion, there will a lot of things they will have to do.

Ryō Mashiba's Past[]

The Tōhō coach telling Fujii about Mashiba's growth.

At the Tanaka Transportation, as Mashiba leaves his job, Tanaka informs him that they put up posters for his world title match against Rosario, noting that they have high hopes for him and people are already asking to buy tickets. At the Tōhō gym, Fujii and the Tōhō coach watch Mashiba hit the sandbag as the former notices Mashiba is standing close to the bag while punching it, wondering if it is an anti-Rosario strategy. The coach claims to not have given Mashiba any specific instructions, but Mashiba has made assumptions. The coach adds that Mashiba is a completely different person now: his recklessness is gone and is giving it his genuine all for victory, which he believes is a huge transformation for him. He adds that Mashiba's training and strength isn't just to fight his old self, as he has his opponent in mind, as well as everyone who has supported him, which he knows that Mashiba himself won't say it, but he feels he is more aware of them now. He adds that Mashiba is different from when he fought on hatred before, so now he feels he can send Mashiba out with pride as a first-class challenger.

Mashiba uncontrollably attacking others.

When Mashiba goes home, he remembers that Kumi is at her job still working night shift, thinking that he has to let her not worry and let her go out on her own. Mashiba then recalls his past, where he was taken to the Uma Police Station after getting into a fight with multiple people at his high school. After being told to go home, Mashiba was told by his parents that if he keeps this up, he won't be able to live in society, and if something happens to them, they won't know what will happen with Kumi as he would be the only one left. Mashiba believed that he can't help it, as when he snaps, it feels like another being comes out and he loses it, wondering if he is the only one like that. After Mashiba and Kumi's parents passed away in a car accident, Mashiba began to take care of Kumi.

Mashiba knocking out a group of attackers after they intended to go after Kumi.

One night while walking on the sidewalk, Mashiba got attacked by a small group of people, trying to not let the being come out and take over him, however, it begins to come out. After defending himself from a group that was attacking him, Mashiba didn't remember how he knocked everyone out and wondered if he can even move forward with Kumi. Mashiba had trouble understanding the paperwork that his parents did. One day, Mashiba was asked by a shady man to simply show up to a location and receive a lot of money. Mashiba did so, and was attacked every time he did it, however, he was able to defeat any who attacked him. While looking for a place to stay, the home owners were willing to take in Kumi, but not Mashiba as there were bad rumours about him. Mashiba decided to cut ties with the shady man, not wanting to get mixed in with the hostile environment, as he would never be able to send Kumi to the light. Mashiba found a job that would hire him, making him excited. However, his excitement was short lived as a huge group of people who knew Mashiba when he was hired under the shady man, looking for revenge. Mashiba sat down, suggesting for them to do what they want with him. The group struck him with weapons and hit him with their fists until they stopped. Not satisfied as Mashiba is still conscious, they intend to go after Kumi. Mashiba immediately gets up, and the rage controls him, resulting in all of them getting attacked and knocked out. Because of this event, Mashiba was sent to jail.

After leaving jail, Mashiba is approached by Mizutani, his probation officer. Mashiba informs him that nobody is coming for him and no one knows what happen, not even Kumi. Mizutani is glad, stating that Mashiba can start anew, but Mashiba still doesn't trust him. Mizutani wishes to stay by Mashiba regardless as long as he can. Mizutani tells Mashiba that Kumi is at his relatives' house, but Mashiba believes he shouldn't show up empty handed, wanting to show his thanks. Mizutani shows Mashiba a home that Kumi and him can live in. Mashiba is nervous, as he isn't confident he can keep the being that makes him rage inside of him, even after seeing a psychiatrist. Mizutani decides to take him to the Tōhō gym, and after the Tōhō coach saw him win in a spar, Mashiba is accepted at the gym, with the Tōhō coach believing that he could be a world champion and rich one day. As Mashiba needs a job, Mizutani tells him about the Tanaka Transportation, that his fellow probation officer, Tanaka runs and says that he would hire him. After Mashiba and Kumi move into their new home, Kumi reveals to him that she will become a nurse so that if he comes home injured because of boxing, she can help him. After Mashiba wins his first match, Mashiba meets Mizutani at a hospital and gifts him a new beret with his fight money. During Mashiba's match against Miyata, he feels fear for the first time in his life. Mashiba, not wanting to lose, couldn't control the being inside of him, forcing Mashiba to step on Miyata's foot and win. The being inside of him was then defeated by Ippo. After Mizutani passed away, Mashiba felt alone again. However, after becoming the OPBF lightweight champion, he realised he is not alone anymore, as if it was a dream. Mashiba doesn't believe it is a dream, as his dream begins now, vowing to himself that he will become the world champion.

At the Tōhō gym, the Tōhō coach and manager watches videos of Rosario's matches. The Tōhō coach believes that the odds aren't in their favour, as it will be a problem if Rosario gets inside. The manager is worried about Mashiba facing a high level in-fighter, as they haven't been able to find a high level in-fighter for him to spar against. They wonder if there is a southpaw who can in-fight at a high level, with fast head movement and a fast step-in for Mashiba to spar against.

The Ideal Sparring Partner[]

The Tōhō coach wondering if they will be able to find a sparring partner for Mashiba.

While doing roadwork, Sendō thanks Miyata for helping him, and comments how he must be helping him as well since it is hard for him to get sparring partners as well. Miyata remarks for him to say that when he actually hits him, making Sendō irritated. Sendō asks about how Mashiba's search for sparring partners is going. Miyata claims that it is harder for Mashiba to get sparring partners because unlike Ricardo, who is rooted in the basics, Rosario is a very peculiar boxer, so there aren't many who can emulate his style, as they need to be a high-level in-fighter who uses the southpaw style. Sendō points out that he is a high-level in-fighter, but Miyata comments that he should worry about himself, making Sendō mad. At the Tōhō gym, the manager informs the coach that the two boxers that got from Thailand and the Philippines want to go back home because they said they don't want to be human punching bags, as they didn't know that Mashiba's reach was that long. The manager notes that Mashiba is a peculiar boxer as well, so it is near impossible to get used to him, however, the coach urges him to search for more southpaw in-fighters by calling all gyms in Japan and overseas, but the manager explains that they already did. The coach wonders if there is anyone who can give them a virtual Rosario.

Ippo thinking about Marcus' movements — Ippo thinking about Rosario's movements.

At the Makunouchi Fishing Boat, while watching videos of Rosario's matches, Ippo observes how his head movement is incredibly fast, slipping past any punches that come towards him, and his step-in is fast as well. Ippo remembers that he is a southpaw, meaning that his lead hand is his right, which hurts his opponents' lefts, which could make Mashiba's Flicker Jabs useless. Ippo knows that Mashiba has his short uppercut, however, he sees one of Rosario's opponents use the technique, and Rosario dodged it with a head slip, stepped inside, and hit him with a jumping left hook. He notices that Rosario's head movement is similar to the Dempsey Roll, and the jumping left hook looked similar to the Gazelle Punch. Ippo believes that this is the worst match up for Mashiba, as his long arms is a problem if Rosario can easily get in close range, however, if he could get experience with a world-level in-fighter who can do the Dempsey Roll and Gazelle Punch, he would be able to adapt better, but he doesn't know where to find someone who fits that description. Ippo remembers that he was supposed to build two figurines for Kumi's job. Ippo builds them, but realises that he built them incorrectly, as one has short arms and one has long arms. He notices he used extra parts for the one with long arms, so he tries to pull them off to make it equal, but he accidentally snaps a joint on the smaller one, making the arms even shorter. Ippo decides to leave it like that since Kumi might not know what the finished product is supposed to look like. Ippo then notices that the short one is like Rosario and the long one is like Mashiba. He puts the figures in a position of Rosario dodging a short uppercut while throwing a left, making him wonder again if there is any sparring partner that can do Rosario's scenario.

Takamura showing Ippo that he is the ideal sparring partner for Mashiba.

Ippo goes to the Kamogawa gym and has Mari call the Tōhō gym for an update on Mashiba's sparring situation. The coach answers and informs Mari that they upped the number of rounds because it is a title match, and that his condition is good, noting that he left is a killer as always. After the call, the coach thinks how he didn't want the information to leak to Rosario's side, so that was all he could say. Ippo later asked Takamura on the gym's rooftop, and was surprised to find out he does know someone nearby that is a in-fighter who can use the Dempsey Roll, Gazelle Punch, and who has experience with Flicker Jabs. Takamura pointed to his left eye and told Ippo to look into it to see the face of the one he is talking about. Ippo looked, saw his reflection, and realised that Takamura's meant him. Ippo points out to Takamura that he is not a southpaw. Takamura wonders if Ippo has ever noticed his pivot leg when he attacks a lot and uses the Dempsey Roll. Ippo tests it out by shadowboxing and realises that he does switch his pivot leg sometimes. Takamura notes that fighters like him just pick whichever leg is easiest to land a punch with, so Ippo has been switching without realising it. Ippo claims that when he jumps in, it is always with his right foot, as if he tried with his left foot he would be too far to attack, however, Takamura advises him to simply try switching legs and figure out what it feels like.

Ippo training to be a southpaw to help Mashiba.

For many days, Ippo trains using his left hand and pivoting with his right leg to get a feel as what it is like being a southpaw. One day, he inserts a long log to the hillside near a sign to represent Mashiba's Flicker Jab and right uppercut, and a small peg in the ground as Mashiba's left pivot leg. He tries to step in with his right foot to outside the peg, however, fails and rolls on the ground. Ippo remembers how him and Antonio knocked legs a lot when they fought, so it is the mirror of that. Ippo tries again, weaving side-to-side under the log while throwing lefts, then lends a high and low left combination on the sign. After succeeding again, Ippo prepares to do two hundred more. At the Kamogawa gym's office, Kamogawa scolds Ippo for planning on helping another gym's boxer when they didn't even ask for his help, and he isn't even a southpaw. Ippo tells him that he feels like if he doesn't tell Mashiba, then he might regret it later. Seeing that Ippo is confident in his advice, Kamogawa allows Ippo to help Mashiba, but not to be rude about it. Upon arrival outside the Tōhō gym, Ippo was reluctant on going in until Itagaki, who was asked by Kamogawa to make sure Ippo doesn't do anything stupid, arrives.

Ippo and Mashiba sparring before the latter's match against Marcus — Ippo and Mashiba sparring.

Ippo and Itagaki enter the gym and the latter explains to the Tōhō coach that Ippo has arrived to spar against Mashiba, shocking the coach. The coach is irritated at their arrival, as Ippo is retired, not a southpaw, and not in the same weight class. The coach asks Ippo if he is really that confident. Ippo claims he isn't confident, since he threw his plan all together so fast and isn't sure if he can even moderate it right, as well as being uneasy about if he can keep from injuring him. The coach mentions he heard a rumour that he cracked Volg's ribs while in Mexico, which means Ippo can fight against a current world champion on equal footing, so he asks for him to get in the ring. Ippo and Mashiba get in the ring with headgear, and the former takes off the weight straps on his wrists and gives it to his second, Itagaki. The three-round spar begins. Ippo takes on the Peek-a-Boo Style, while Mashiba uses the Hitman Style and throws Flicker Jabs at the quickly approaching Ippo. Mashiba notices by Ippo's right leg in front that he is doing the southpaw style. Ippo passes by many Flicker Jabs and gets close to Mashiba, however, Mashiba increases the speed of the Flicker Jabs, making Ippo fly back as they hit his guard. Mashiba hits Ippo's guard with a Chopping Right that knocks him to the ropes. As Ippo moves toward Mashiba again, feeling as if he hasn't been helpful yet, Itagaki gets between them. Itagaki pointed out Ippo forgot to take the weight straps off his legs, so Itagaki takes them off. Ippo advises Mashiba to pay attention to what he does, as he is certain this exact scenario will happen when he fights Rosario.

Ippo pushing Mashiba to ropes with a barrage of punches to his guard.

The spar continues, and Ippo slips past Mashiba's Flicker Jabs. Ippo gets close and ducks under one of the Flicker Jabs, and lands a left hook on Mashiba's guard. Then, Mashiba throws a right short uppercut that Ippo steps back from while throwing another left hook that hits Mashiba's guard before stepping back again. Mashiba and the gym's boxers are shocked at the combo Ippo just did. The gym's boxers become confused when Itagaki lifts three fingers up. Ippo thinks how it went almost exactly as he imagined. Mashiba and the Tōhō coach notices Ippo is keeping himself at a distance rather than rushing forward. With Ippo and Mashiba at long range, the latter throws out a Flicker Jab. Ippo instantly closes the distance while ducking under the Flicker Jab. From there, Ippo unleashes a barrage of punches at Mashiba's guard, causing the latter to put his back against the ropes. The Tōhō coach is shocked by Ippo's slow-to-fast tempo he hasn't had before, as well as Ippo's tactic of having his pivot leg outside, keeping him farther from Mashiba's right, as he would have thought Ippo was a natural southpaw if he didn't know him. As Mashiba was about to throw a right short uppercut, the coach yelled for him to not do it. Mashiba dodges Ippo's left hook that would have hit him if he threw the short uppercut. The coach pauses the spar to apologise to Ippo for being mistaken about him before the spar started, and mentions to Mashiba that Ippo is like an exact copy of Rosario. Mashiba decides to take Ippo seriously and begin his world title match strategy against him. Mashiba widens the distance between his feet and has his upper body more squared up.

Mashiba hitting Ippo after the latter misses his punch.

As Mashiba begins using his method for his world title match, Ippo dodges a Flicker Jab, then steps his right foot over Mashiba's left foot and starts throwing a left. Mashiba leans back, and Ippo realises his left is going to miss because Mashiba is farther back, and his right is coming. Ippo notices that since Mashiba is farther back, he should be able to guard in time, however, he is shocked as he gets his by Mashiba's right body blow. Ippo doesn't understand how it happened, but plans to take it as many times it takes in order to be helpful. Ippo dodges and blocks two head shots before stepping in and getting hit with a right body blow. That happens two times before Ippo realises how Mashiba's new stance works: he sticks out his front leg to create a "barrier" that makes it hard to push in, and with his upper body more squared up, his right will be closer to his opponent, making it reach longer. Ippo tells Mashiba that his method for the world title match is amazing, which Mashiba counters with a left jab. Ippo begins to block a barrage of punches while thinking of how Mashiba's already hard to dodge left is even harder now that he has to focus on Mashiba's right as well now because of the new stance. Ippo sees a right coming and guards his body since it was an unguarded area, however, he gets hit in the face, as Mashiba predicted he would lower his guard.

After the three round spar ends, Ippo is glad they are both uninjured. Mashiba suggests that they continue sparring, but Ippo claims that he is all beat up, and while he has some gas left in the tank, he is not an active boxer, so he doesn't have the mental stamina or focus to keep going. Mashiba tells him he is fine since he said he still had some gas left. Mashiba thinks of how angry he is still when he saw Ippo with Kumi the other night, believing that it is unforgivable that he was trying to see how far he could go with her, so he isn't letting his chance of pulverising him go to waste. Ippo thinks of how he just came to the gym to be helpful, so he wishes that Mashiba wouldn't use this situation just to harass him because he was visiting Kumi the other night. Ippo stomps his foot down and lets Mashiba know he is ready to fight.

Ippo and Mashiba's deciding dual exchange.

As their second spar begins, Ippo and Mashiba are fighting at close range when Mashiba knocks legs with Ippo. Ippo yells at Mashiba for it, but Mashiba tells him it wasn't on purpose. As Ippo lands a right uppercut, the Tōhō coach yells at Ippo since he switched to orthodox, which Ippo apologises that he got carried away, and Mashiba yells at the coach to not stop them. As Ippo and Mashiba takes multiple hits from their bloody brawl, Itagaki snaps some pictures on his phone to document the fight. Ippo and Mashiba argue about Kumi while fighting at close range until they hit each other with a dual exchange consisting of Ippo's left to Mashiba's head and Mashiba's right to Ippo's head that hits directly, causing Ippo to fall down and declare that he is done, ending the spar. Mashiba's coach thought that the spar was good and asks Mashiba if he wants Ippo to come by everyday. Mashiba doesn't think it will happen since he knocked Ippo out to the point he can't even move, however, they become shocked when they notice Ippo already left the ring to talk to Mashiba's sparring partners to give them tips. Ippo wishes Mashiba good luck on his title match and leaves the Tōhō gym with Itagaki, who is amazed Ippo fought Mashiba for seven rounds. The Tōhō coach is amazed by Ippo's toughness and recovery, believing that he is even stronger now than he was when he was active. Mashiba leaves the gym and calls out to Ippo. After a long pause Mashiba tells him to go already. Ippo and Itagaki wishes for him to becomes world champion as the walk away. Itagaki and the Tōhō coach wonder why Mashiba can't be honest and tell Ippo that he is grateful.

Kumi apologising for Mashiba hurting Ippo.

Ippo returns home with a swollen face that shocks Hiroko, resulting in her calling Kumi over. When Kumi gets there, she scolds him for sparring and going too far for practise, thinking Ippo was sparring Takamura. After learning it was her brother who hurt Ippo, she apologises, but Hiroko and Ippo tells her it is fine. Ippo claims that the fact that he is in a lot of pain means that Mashiba is incredible and makes him think that he will definitely win the world title, which makes Kumi happy. At Itagaki's house, Itagaki wishes that he can share what he captured to everyone before going to bed. The next morning, Itagaki wakes up and is surprised by the amount of notifications he has on his phone.

Going Viral[]

Kamogawa gym members talking about Itagaki's Pekitter trending.

As Ippo, Taihei, and Kintarō do roadwork together, Itagaki catches up to them. Itagaki notices Ippo is on a bike, which Ippo claims that Kumi gave him a warning, so he has to take it easy so his head injury doesn't get worse. Itagaki reveals to the three that he is on fire. Ippo is confused as he doesn't have a smartphone, while Taihei and Kintarō quickly catch on, looking at their smartphones. Itagaki and Ippo goes to the Kamogawa gym's rooftop, where Aoki and Kimura are shocked about Itagaki's Pekitter pekeet going viral. Ippo is surprised Aoki and Kimura use Pekitter, but they mention that they use it to tell people that they have a match coming up, and fans also use it to learn when tickets go on sale. Itagaki shows the pekeet that went viral which showed an image of Mashiba getting punched while the post reads that he is in top form with a anti-southpaw strategy in place. Aoki notes that the image doesn't match what the post says, while Kimura wonders how it even went viral. Itagaki doesn't know how the post went viral, as he had a hundred followers, but now he has over a thousand. As the group look at the comments on the post, Aoki thinks that Itagaki saying that Mashiba is in "top form" but showing him getting hit looks like he is making fun of him, and Kimura thinks that the post makes it look like Itagaki is trying to brag that he is the only one who knows who Mashiba was fighting in the spar. Itagaki claims he didn't have any other good pictures since he couldn't show Ippo's face since he is retired.

Yagi scolding Kamogawa gym members for looking down on middle-aged woman style of writing.

Itagaki shows a reply from "BAN-GOAT" that was flaming against him, and Aoki remembers the user but doesn't remember him writing like a middle-aged woman. Yagi suddenly appears, saying to not look down on middle-aged woman style of writing, as the "text-challenged generation" only wants to get along well with young people in a calm and collected manner, believing it to be the epitome of wisdom and courage. Yagi leaves, and Ippo questions on how Itagaki can be so sure a person is a woman based on writing style. Itagaki explains that the anonymity allows anyone to say anything they want and other people won't know one's real age or gender, and one can have as many burner accounts they want. Itagaki states that he is the one who shows his real name and face, so he doesn't care what an anonymous person says. Kimura claims that why they are fine using their real names and faces, some can't afford to do so, and many changes have happened by anonymous sources, so he doesn't think he should take anonymity lightly. Kimura pekeets about the people flaming Itagaki in hopes of backing Itagaki up, however, Itagaki posts a pun on getting flamed, which starts up the flaming again. Hiroshi and Isamu arrives to the rooftop with a laptop, saying that they got some new analysis results. Hiroshi and Isamu reveal that someone under the name of "Yatta☆Ra☆Mukky @mukky" who keeps the flame war going by posting as it starts to die down.

Kimura running away after it is found out he was the main one flaming Itagaki.

Itagaki wishes to meet Yatta☆Ra☆Mukky and beat him up, but Kimura argues if he can even do that. Itagaki continues replying back to Yatta☆Ra☆Mukky, making the former more angry. Ippo tells Itagaki to forget about it since the poster named "Kimmu-ra' is too much, before realising he accidentally read Yatta☆Ra backwards. Hiroshi and Isamu begins cracking the code in Yatta☆Ra☆Mukky's name and concludes their investigation that Kimura is the culprit. As Aoki and Itagaki yell at Kimura, the latter runs away, claiming he was just jealous that Itagaki got so many new followers and wanted attention. Nearby, Takamura was listening to the conversation.

Takamura revealing his intention of making a Pekitter account to The Regular and Itagaki's father — Takamura revealing his intention of making a Pekitter account to Lord and Itagaki's father.

That night, at his house, Takamura tells Lord, and Itagaki's father that he will be making a Pekitter account because he knows everyone wants to know about his daily life. He invited the two over for hotpot to make his first pekeet a food post so that his first pekeet won't start a flame war. Takamura suggests for the two to strip in order for them to not pass out since it is in the Summer and a hotpot is like a sauna in his room. Lord extremely skinny body makes Takamura laugh, telling him to eat more, and when Itagaki's father strips, his wig flies off his head, making Takamura laugh. As the three began to drink, Itagaki's father spills his drink and makes a pun, causing Takamura and Lord to laugh. Itagaki's father reminds Takamura and Lord that their goal for the night was to take a picture of the food for Takamura's Pekitter. Takamura, however, doesn't want his first pekeet to start a flame war, pointing out that Itagaki's father and Lord are naked. Itagaki's father notes his extremely small underwear makes him not naked, and Lord is handed boxing gloves by Takamura to cover up. Itagaki's father has the two gather together for a group shot and takes the picture. Takamura posts the pekeet, however, it results in him getting permanently banned from Pekitter.

The Champion's Whereabouts[]

Yanaoka informing Sendō and Miyata about Rosario's disappearance.

Later, Sendō talks to Miyata about the flame wars that have been happening with some of the Kamogawa gym members while doing roadwork. They arrive outside of the Naniwa Boxing Club, where Yanaoka comes out to mention to them how there has been some noise in Tokyo. Miyata assumes that Yanaoka is talking about the flame war in Tokyo, but Yanaoka explains that Rosario is missing. The Tōhō gym tried calling Rosario's manager, but the latter doesn't know where Rosario is. Miyata wonders if there is something the manager doesn't know about his boxer, and is puzzled as to why he would tell his enemy's side of the situation. Sendō thinks it is because Rosario's side is freaking out about it, and Miyata doesn't think that he can fight if he isn't in his best condition. Sendō wonders if Rosario is trying to avoid the fight, but Miyata believes that he isn't so soft as to do that. At the Kamogawa gym, Yagi informs the gym members that Rosario is missing, shocking the group. Taihei and Kintarō think that if Rosario doesn't go to his match, then he loses by forfeit, making Mashiba the new world champion. Itagaki corrects them, explaining that if Rosario were to forfeit the match, he would no longer be champion, but that means that the title will be vacant, and they will find another opponent to decide the new champion. Taihei and Kintarō get excited, because that means Mashiba may fight a weaker opponent to get the belt easier. Kimura tells them that when they become professional boxers and have matches, they will understand as well.

Ippo thinking that Rosario has to show up, as it is too absurd to even accept.

Kimura explains to Taihei and Kintarō that a boxer prepares and trains for a match where they put everything on the line against an opponent whom they thought about every day before the match began. He adds that a boxer has even more feelings before a world title match, as their opponent has everything it takes to satisfy them as they are the champion one wants to become, and now they might be able to become one. Taihei and Kintarō are unable to understand Kimura's speech. Takamura enters the Kamogawa gym and tells the group how a boxer before a world title match spends every day imagining what it will look like the night they become champion, thinking of only victory, picturing their selves as victorious and using that to sustain them through training. He asks everyone what they would do if their opponent wasn't there after all of that on the night of their promised match. Ippo thinks that Rosario has to show up, as it is too absurd to even accept. Yagi notes that sometimes one side spreads false information to throw the other side off, and that if it is a play, then it is effective. He adds that Rosario has already booked a round trip ticket and hotel, making it suspicious, and then there is the cancellation fee for the venue and refunding all of the tickets. At the Tōhō gym, the staff are worried as they still can't find Rosario, but tells Mashiba that it will be okay and that they will make it work somehow. Mashiba leaves the gym after telling them that everything is going according to plan as he is in top form and his weight control is fine. Mashiba does roadwork while only thinking about the world title. The next day, at the Monthly Boxing Fan, Fujii gets a phone call and is informed that Rosario is found.

Rosario's Arrival to Japan[]

After arriving to the Narita Terminal 1 in Japan, Rosario's manager comments to Rosario how he couldn't get in touch with him because he was in jail. Noticing Rosario looking unhappy, the manager complains that he should be the one upset since he was the one looking for him and had to bail him out over the shooting incident. Rosario glares at his manager, telling him that while he shot at the person, he didn't hit him, and that the other individual pulled a gun on him first, so it isn't his fault. Rosario wants to drink some water, but his manager needs to weigh him at the hotel first in order to make sure his weight control went fine. Rosario claims how he thought the Japanese were supposed to be polite, shouting at everyone that he is a world champion who travelled to Japan and that he should be greeted. After Rosario is met with stares, he gets irritated and threatens that he will shoot everyone, but after his manager attempts to stop him, Rosario takes a water from his manager's luggage and tells him that he couldn't bring a gun on the plane. Rosario complains that he can't do what he wants, so the world is all wrong, making him the unhappy one. After drinking the water, Rosario throws the empty bottle at the crowd to make them move while claiming that he will make sure that everyone is as unhappy as he is. Among the reporters who kept their distance from Rosario, Fujii is surprised by how right he was that the world champion wouldn't be in the mood for a welcome reception.

The Kamogawa gym members discuss Rosario's arrival to Japan. Ippo is relieved that Mashiba's world title match can proceed. However, Takamura still doubts it. The gym members believe he means that Rosario is out of shape due to lack of training options because he was in jail, however, Takamura claims he didn't mean his condition, but something else that would stop the match from happening. The gym members realise that Rosario's weight could be a problem. Takamura notes that the weigh-in and press conference is tomorrow, so they will find out then. The next day, at the Roigal Hotel, Mashiba passes his weigh-in, however, Rosario is over. Rosario's manager, Mr. Bin claims that it will be fine as they have time for the second weigh-in. As Mr. Bin was leaving with Rosario, the Tōhō coach scolds the two for the situation regarding Rosario's sudden disappearance a week before his match and for then being over the limit. Mashiba stops his coach, suggesting for him to wait for the second weigh-in. Mr. Bin takes Rosario to a sauna and scolds him for drinking the water at the airport that made him over the limit. After the sauna, Mr. Bin has Rosario do roadwork.

Fujii and Mr. Bin talking about Rosario.

Fujii walks up to Mr. Bin, who claims to have no comment on the matter. Fujii claims he didn't come to talk to him about the match, but about him personally. Fujii asks Mr. Bin as to why he is a manager for such a problem child, to which the manager answers that Rosario makes him rich. Fujii points out that the cancellation fees and penalties that will happen if the match doesn't happen will put him in the red, and the police are keeping an eye on him as well. Mr. Bin believes that Rosario won't drop the weight, as even if he does, he will be too dehydrated to fight, however, he doesn't care what shape Rosario is in as long as he gets in the ring. Fujii notes that if Rosario loses the match, he won't be making any more money off of him, however, Mr. Bin claims that Rosario will win because he is strong. Mr. Bin adds that Rosario was scouted into the organisation as a teenager and then worked his way up and became the boss's bodyguard. Fujii asks if Rosario is still part of that organisation. Mr. Bin tells Fujii that Rosario is not part of that organisation anymore and was a candidate for the top ranks early on, but believes that that would have been a bad idea. Mr. Bin explains that while Rosario was a loyal top ranker, but to others, he seemed as if he would betray them, and when someone tipped off the police on the organisation, Rosario was suspected to be the one who did it. While Rosario claimed it wasn't him, he was attacked by members of the organisation as they believed it was him.

Rosario at his press conference for his match against Mashiba.

While doing roadwork, Rosario falls over in exhaustion and notices a vending machine with drinks in it. Rosario gets frustrated when he doesn't have any money to get a drink. Rosario remembers Mashiba passing his weigh-in easily, thinking it is unfair and wanting to make it even by making them just as unhappy. Rosario returns to Mr. Bin after the roadwork and passes the second weight check. At the press conference, the reporters are unable to get anything out of it since Rosario is drinking bottle of water without speaking to them, and Mashiba didn't attend. That night at the Mashiba residence, Kumi gives the phone to Mashiba since Tanaka and the others from the Tanaka Transportation are calling to give encouragement to Mashiba. Mashiba gets a call from Sendō, who mentions how Rosario barely made weight and didn't do enough training. Sendō tells Mashiba that the person next to him wanted to let him know that it wouldn't be good if the one who beat him got hurt badly, and wishes for him to take the belt. After Mashiba tells Sendō to let him rest, they end the call and Sendō gives the phone back to Miyata. Sendō and Miyata argue after the latter claims he didn't say what the former told Mashiba.

Judgement Day - Main Event - WBC Lightweight Title Match - Champion Marcus Rosario VS. Challenge Ryō Mashiba (WBC Rank 1)[]

Mashiba raises his fist after Ippo's encouragement.

On the morning of Mashiba's world title match against Rosario, Kumi notices Mashiba has been sitting next to the phone he took off the hook, wondering if he was waiting for someone to call him. Mashiba claims that he wasn't as he grabs his luggage and leaves the house after telling her that he will become the world champion and come back home. Stepping outside, Mashiba notices Ippo waiting for him with a sign for encouraging him. Ippo declares that he believes that Mashiba will become the world champion and will cheer for him with everything has has. Mashiba asks Ippo if he really has been standing there all morning just to tell him that, which Ippo confirms. As Kumi steps outside and tells Ippo that she will get ready, Ippo tells Mashiba that he really did wait for him, but he also promised to go to the Yokohama Arena with her as well to watch his match. Mashiba walks away while claiming that he still doesn't accept him before raising his right fist in the air. At the Yokohama Arena, the crowd outside notice the "Judgement Day" tagline, noting that neither boxers are innocent as they have done bad things before, wondering who will receive judgement. Inside the venue, as the audience watches an undercard, Sendō tells Miyata how he is surprised how packed the place is, as he didn't think Mashiba was so popular.

Rosario walking to the ring for his match against Mashiba.

Takamura, Aoki, Kimura, and Itagaki goes to the Yokohama Arena and they meet Sendō and Miyata at a hallway. As Aoki and Kimura think that Miyata and Sendō are being friendly towards each other, Miyata claims that since he had to order his ticket while at Sendō's gym, he has to sit with him, much to his dismay. Takamura tells Sendō that since he is fighting Ricardo, he has some advice: to do his best, making Sendō angry as it wasn't advice. Sendō wonders where Ippo is, and the Kamogawa group explain that he is with the cheering squad in the audience. In the audience, Kumi notices Ippo is stiff. Ippo apologises and explains that when he is fighting in the ring, it isn't a problem, but when he is a second or watching a match, it is stressful for him. Kumi states that she is nervous too, however, she notes that Mashiba was very calm last night and in the morning, thinking that he was trying to make her feel calmer as well. Ippo becomes fired up to cheer for Mashiba. Rosario enters his waiting room late since he had to go to a salon to get his hair twirled into his usual hairstyle. Rosario shadowboxes, and he feels like his body is light and can move normal again. Mr. Bin sees that Rosario is as sharp as ever, and it wouldn't look like he missed any training time while he was in jail to others. In Mashiba's waiting room, the Tōhō coach tells Mashiba that Rosario will be low on stamina due to his lack of training and failed weight control, predicting that he will try to end it in the first half. He thinks that Rosario won't be able to rush in at the start and steal the pace like he usually does, and that he will start to slow down in the middle rounds. He advises Mashiba to not go along with Rosario's exchanges in the first half, and to exhaust him by making him move around and miss his punches. Sendō and Takamura yawn as the semi-final consisting of Takahiro Tagami and Totsuka Tokky ends in a decision.

Mashiba walking to the ring fo his match against Rosario — Mashiba walking to the ring for his match against Rosario.

As the WBC lightweight world title match is about to begin, Mashiba and Rosario enters the ring. Miyata tells Sendō how Rosario has a history of rough fights. He explains that the moment the gong sounds, he swarms his opponents immediately, and his brawling ability is extraordinarily high. Miyata adds that since Rosario seems like the type to fight more instinctively, he decides to let Sendō analyse the fight. Ippo tells Kumi, Tanaka, and Rie that Rosario will want to end the match as early as possible due to his failed weight control, but if Mashiba lasts to the second half, then there is strong chance Mashiba can win. Aoki, Kimura, and Itagaki notices how the reach difference is more obvious when the two stand close to each other, thinking that the only strategy to go with is to keep Rosario at a distance, make him miss, and deplete his stamina. Both boxers stand near their corners as the gong sounds to begin the match.

Mashiba and Rosario's first round exchange — Mashiba and Rosario exchanging punches.

As Mashiba and Rosario are about to touch gloves as the match begins, Rosario believes that Mashiba will drag the match out and drain his stamina, thinking that that isn't a bad idea, however, he plans to end it before Mashiba pulls it off. Mashiba makes his move first, landing a right straight body blow, shocking Rosario. Mashiba throws another punch that Rosario knocks down. Mashiba begins throwing Flicker Jabs that Rosario blocks until he jumps back to create some distance. Ippo is surprised by how Rosario is the one who retreats despite him being an in-fighter while Mashiba is the one pushing forward. Sawamura is in the audience seats and is entertained by how the match is going. Takamura tells Aoki, Kimura, and Itagaki how buying time until the middle rounds isn't in Mashiba's nature, which is why he started attacking right from the beginning, however, that is just like Rosario's nature. Rosario is irritated that Mashiba has thrown punches while he hasn't, deeming it unfair. Both Mashiba and Rosario enter an exchange match where both boxers fail to land a hit on each other until the first round ends. Ippo is unable to hide his shock as he deems both boxers as incredible and acknowledges how strong Rosario is.

Mashiba and Rosario replies to their seconds after the first round.

When Mashiba goes to his corner, the Tōhō coach scolds him for not following their plan and instead pressed forward. However, upon looking at Mashiba's expression, the coach realises that he has determined that this isn't an opponent who the plan will work against. The coach warns for Mashiba that exchanging punches is Rosario's turf, so he believes he will kick up another gear, so he instructs him to dodge only if it is a direct hit, to not step in too close, and to not let his focus lapse for a second. Mashiba stands up, claiming that he will tear the champion belt off of Rosario. At Rosario's corner, while Rosario tells Mr. Bin that he does not care about points, Mr. Bin warns that this is an away match, and it may come down to a decision. Rosario stands up, deeming it unfair.

Rosario overtaking Mashiba's front foot while stepping in.

As the second round begins, Aoki believes that Rosario will gladly have another exchange match, however, Itagaki points out that Rosario is keeping his distance. Sendō wonders if Rosario is being cautious now. Miyata claims that Mashiba's range is longer than Rosario expected, so he might not have a choice but to be more hesitant. Rosario closes in on Mashiba with a fast step-in. He ducks under Mashiba's Flicker Jab at close range while putting his right foot behind Mashiba's left foot and throwing a left straight at Mashiba's face. Mashiba blocks the punch with one hand, while the impact makes him get knocked back. The audience are surprised by how fast Rosario's step-in and punches are. Mashiba tries to keep a distance from Rosario, however, Rosario quickly gets close to Mashiba with a fast step-in, putting his right foot behind Mashiba's left foot and throwing a barrage of punches that Mashiba blocks. Kimura notes how Rosario's punches come from weird angles that make it hard to dodge. Miyata observes that Rosario overtakes Mashiba's outside foot the moment he steps in, and then throws a strong left, thinking that that is what is so irritating about fighting Southpaws. Takamura deems Rosario a cut above the rest and believes that the key to fighting a Southpaw is the position of their front foot and setting up one's right against their left. Ippo thinks that if Mashiba can't figure out what to do against Rosario's tactics and adapt, the match will just go downhill. Mr. Bin thinks that there are few boxers who can replicate techniques at the level Rosario has and is sure this is the first time Mashiba has seen this, dismissing the idea that Mashiba can adapt on the fly during the match.

Rosario unable to reach Mashiba after the latter widened the positions of his feet.

Mashiba widens his feet position of his Hitman Style, making Rosario think that he is trying to hit him with a counter. Rosario throws a left, however, with Mashiba's left foot sticking far out, Rosario can't reach him. Mashiba lands a right jab counter that makes Rosario lean over from the pain, exciting the audience and shocking Mr. Bin. Miyata is impressed by how Mashiba sticking his front foot out and widening his stance created more distance that prevented Rosario from landing his punch. Rosario misses two of his punches and gets countered both times before taking a distance. Miyata believes that it isn't just practising enough that let Mashiba do the strategy, but the calibre of the sparring partner, thinking that quality is more important that quantity. Mr. Bin is surprised at Mashiba, as it should be the first time he has seen a Southpaw at this level, wondering if it really isn't the first time for him. The Tōhō coach is grateful to Ippo for helping Mashiba, as he believes that there was no way he could adapt like this. Mashiba continues countering Rosario's attempts to hit him as the latter is unable to reach him. Just as Mashiba was about to land a Chopping Right on the defenceless Rosario, the referee steps in as the second round ends.

Before walking to his corner, Mashiba looks at Ippo as the latter gives a thumbs up. Aoki comments on how Mashiba's Chopping Right had perfect timing. Itagaki wonders if he stopped his Sunday punch because of the gong sounding, but Aoki remembers that Mashiba never cared about that before. The audience cheers loudly over Mashiba's performance. Tanaka asks Ippo what he was signalling towards Mashiba when he was looking at him. Ippo claims that he just did a thumbs up and Mashiba must have been just looking at Kumi. Tanaka asks Ippo how the match will turn out from a professional's perspective. Ippo believes that it is still too early to tell. Tanaka orders the Mashiba fans to cheer and give Mashiba their strength.

Rosario hitting Mashiba with a right hook counter.

The third round begins with a Mashiba chant as Mashiba heads to the centre of the ring. Rosario, however, stands still at his corner without a fighting pose. After a moment of not moving from his corner, Rosario slowly moves along the ropes while grumbling that it is cheap and unfair that he is the only one getting hit. Mashiba throws Flicker Jabs that Rosario blocks. Sendō mentions to Miyata that Rosario is baiting Mashiba into rushing him, but Mashiba is used to the tactic so he won't fall for it. Rosario rushes at Mashiba while throwing punches. Both boxers start missing their punches as Mashiba steps backwards and Rosario chases him. Rosario chases Mashiba with a barrage of punches as the latter steps back. Mashiba counters one of Rosario's punches. Sendō mentions to Miyata that Rosario's body seems first-rate and may have better movement than Mashiba. Sendō adds that Rosario's usual tactic of going headfirst into slugfests is not working this time. Miyata asks if it means that Mashiba is the mature one in the ring. Sendō believes he is, and Miyata states that Sendō should learn from Mashiba then, making Sendō angry. After Mashiba gets Rosario to the ropes by hitting him with another right, Mashiba throws a barrage of punches at Rosario's guard. A precise right hits Rosario's face, causing his knees to buckle. Mashiba takes the opportunity to throw a one-two combination. Mashiba's left gets blocked, and, when he throws his right, Rosario puts his front foot behind Mashiba's to get into a favourable distance at Mashiba's side and lands a right hook counter on Mashiba's face, causing him to go down.

Mashiba landing a right uppercut on Rosario.

Miyata notes how the range and positioning helped Rosario, as it is extremely difficult to see a Southpaw's right hook coming over one's shoulder. Mashiba looks at Ippo and Kumi, getting angry after seeing Kumi worryingly putting her hands on Ippo, wanting him to get his hands off of Kumi. Ippo motions for Mashiba to get up. Mashiba didn't realise he went down and gets up at the count of eight, continuing the match. As soon as the referee signals to continue the match, Rosario rushes towards Mashiba. As Rosario charges towards Mashiba, the latter throws Flicker Jabs to keep Rosario away. The technique gets blocked and dodged, and Rosario begins attacking Mashiba's guard, which pushes him into a corner. In-between Rosario's attack, Mashiba throws a right uppercut that hits directly and downs Rosario. Rosario gets up at the count of four, continuing the match. As both boxers avoid attacking each other by staying at a distance, the audience wants them to attack, however, Miyata notes that their damage was steep, so they don't have the energy to rush forward. Mashiba and Rosario suddenly rush towards each other and about to throw a punch, however, the referee steps in between them as the third round ends.

Mashiba and Rosario stand up at their corners as the fourth round begins.

While both boxers are at their corners, Sawamura moves from his seat and sits next to Miyata and Sendō after forcing the person sitting next to them to switch seats with him. Sawamura, not able to predict what will happen next, asks the two what will happen. Sendō asks Miyata of his thoughts, but he doesn't know either, claiming that they should be the ones explaining it to him since they are similar creatures to Mashiba and Rosario. At Mashiba's corner, Mashiba asks the Tōhō coach what he got hit with. The coach answers that it was a super high speed right hook that went over his shoulder when he stepped in deep, deeming it unavoidable. He adds that it wasn't something someone can practice for during sparring, and that it was a spur of the moment kind of punch. Mashiba stands up and thinks that he can't rely on ordinary methods anymore. At Rosario's corner, Rosario expresses his frustration to Mr. Bin, thinking that it is unfair and that he is done holding back. Rosario stands up and plans to be the last one standing no matter what it takes. As Aoki notices that Rosario's hairstyle has changed as his hair has come undone, Takamura hopes that it is only his hairstyle that changed. Ippo feels as if the air around Rosario has changed.

Rosario stepping on Mashiba's foot while attacking.

As the fourth round begins, Rosario makes a dash towards Mashiba, who waits with his Hitman Style. Aoki and Kimura wonder why Takamura said that Rosario's hairstyle isn't the only thing that changed, as he is about to do the same in-fighting he has been doing. A headbutt almost occurs when Rosario sticks his head forward as he reaches Mashiba, who blocks his head with his right hand and then steps to Rosario's right. However, while doing so, Mashiba accidentally trips over Rosario's foot, making him lose balance, and almost gets hit by Rosario's right overhand before he blocks it from hitting his face. Mashiba dodges Rosario's headbutt and fist that flies toward him at the same times. When he dodged the second time, however, he trips over Rosario's foot once again as he stumbles back. Sawamura tells Sendō that Rosario is tripping Mashiba on purpose. Takamura mentions that he was right about Rosario's hairstyle not being the only thing that changed, adding that he has become much rougher than before, going from "bad boy" to "evil". Rosario continues to use his tactic of headbutting while punching as Mashiba dodges both attacks. Rosario steps on Mashiba foot while doing a headbutt and throwing a punch at the same time. While Mashiba dodges both attacks, Rosario's foot is still on Mashiba's, letting him land an intentional headbutt.

Mashiba being taken over by evil thoughts.

The referee pauses the match to give Rosario a stern warning for the headbutt that was ruled an accident. The audience and Mashiba's seconds jeer at the referee for ruling it as an accident. Mashiba begins to bleed near his left eye from the headbutt and a doctor is called to check on it. Miyata asks Sawamura if the headbutts and foot stepping are necessary for boxing. Sawamura claims that it isn't for boxing, but it is for winning. The doctor checks on Mashiba wound, stating that it isn't that deep, but it is bleeding a lot. Before a decision is made, Mashiba walks to the centre of the ring and motions for Rosario to come to him. Rosario is thrilled by Mashiba's face, deeming the match fair now. The referee decides to let the match continue as the doctor stated that the wound is non-threatening. Just as evil thoughts begin taking over Mashiba, Kumi yells out for him to do his best, bringing him back to his senses. As Mashiba enters his Hitman Style and Rosario rushes towards him, Mashiba feints a left, and lands a right straight body blow. Mashiba steps back with a tight guard covering his injured left eye while throwing rights at the approaching Rosario above and below. Rosario knocks away a right while stepping in and punches at Mashiba left block, aiming to make the cut by his left eye worse. Mashiba backs away and continues keeping his distance without punching back.

Mashiba attempting to elbow Rosario's back.

Aoki is surprised Mashiba, who is very aggressive, is deciding to keep his distance, remembering that Mashiba has been in situations like this before and won out by forcing a slugfest. Takamura points out that this isn't the same as before, as his opponent is on a different level, so if he did something like that, the cut will reopen and there will be a doctor stop. Rosario catches up to Mashiba and continues hitting Mashiba's left guard. Mashiba is unable to see on his left side and trips over Rosario's foot, causing him to stumble back into a corner. With Mashiba stuck in a corner, Rosario unleashes a barrage of punches on Mashiba's guard. With fifteen seconds until the fourth round ends, Mashiba's cut starts to bleed again from the impact of the punches through the guard. Evil thoughts begin to take over Mashiba, suggesting for him to elbow the back of Rosario's neck as his head is lowered. As Mashiba raises his right arm to do the elbow, he stops as the fourth round ends.

The Tōhō coach noticing that Mashiba isn't listening to his advice.

As Mashiba goes to his corner, his seconds praise his performance and prepares to stop the blood. As the Tōhō coach places a towel on Mashiba's cut, he stops after feeling something. Sawamura believes that Mashiba's blood is boiling as he is remembering what he did to him when they fought and will get into the mindset of fighting dirtier than the opponent. Sendō remembers Mashiba's recent matches where he was in a jam or fouled on and didn't do any fouls, thinking that Mashiba has graduated from that. Sawamura claims that people don't change and that Mashiba just hasn't ran into someone as evil and unforgivable as him in so long. He adds that when evil meets that same evil, they resonate, pointing out how thick with tension the air is in the venue now. At Rosario's corner, Mr. Bin asks Rosario of his condition. Rosario claims that he is filled with excitement as he know what Mashiba is doing, predicting that he will take it to a brawl next round, which is his ring. At Mashiba's corner, the Tōhō coach tells Mashiba that they managed to stop the bleeding, but if the cut gets hit again, it will likely reopen. As the coach advises Mashiba to stay cautious and keep his distance, he realises that he isn't listening.

As the fifth round begins, Mashiba and Rosario charge toward each other, colliding heads as they meet. Immediately after, Rosario stomps on Mashiba's foot. Sawamura notes that while Rosario seems to just be a regular dirty fighter, he is also throwing a legitimate punch whenever he fouls. Mashiba is annoyed by the fact that if he gets too close, Rosario headbutts him, if he tries to get away, Rosario steps on his foot, planning to destroy him once his cut stops bleeding. As Mashiba starts backing away, Rosario steps on his foot once again, this time Rosario lands a left straight on Mashiba's face, however, it wasn't a direct hit. The audience jeers at Rosario again for the obvious foul that steals the pace. Mashiba starts having evil thoughts again about how it is unforgivable what Rosario is doing when he worked so hard to get where he is. Ippo tells everyone in the audience that they must cheer for Mashiba, feeling that he needs to hear them. As the audience does a Mashiba chant, Mashiba goes towards Rosario while thinking about how he needed his evil thoughts to mask his own fears, to show off to everyone, to support himself, and when he was weak, thanking the source of his evil thoughts while also telling it to not come back around him anymore.

Rosario attempting to counter Mashiba's right straight.

Mashiba wishes to pay back the ones cheering for him with his two fists, as their voices saved him from losing himself. Mashiba throws jabs to Rosario passes through. When Rosario gets close to Mashiba and was about to do a headbutt-punch combination, Mashiba lands a left jab-right straight body blow. Rosario tries to step on Mashiba's foot, but Mashiba moves his foot in time and lands another right straight body blow. Rosario steps back as Mashiba throws a left jab. The Tōhō coach wishes that Mizutani was watching the boy who he brought to him and made them stressed out now standing tall and proud. The cut above Mashiba's left eye reopens, getting into his eye, however, Mashiba desires to keep fighting as he can still see. Rosario wonders what he can do about Mashiba's right straight body blow and wants to crush Mashiba's happiness as the cheers must make him feel good. Rosario plans to close in and fire a precise shot. Seeing a opportunity for a counter in-between the time it takes for Mashiba to throw a right after a left, Rosario throws a left hook as Mashiba throws a right straight. Both boxers miss as the gong to end the fifth round sounds.

Mashiba and Rosario ready for the sixth round.

The Tōhō coach orders the other two seconds to get the hemostat to stop Mashiba's bleeding, wanting to give it all they got since Mashiba is doing the same. As the Tōhō coach places a towel on Mashiba's face, he notices that something feels different from before, as while Mashiba is still heated, he is also cool at the same time. At Rosario's corner, the referee warns the corner that Rosario is fighting too roughly, telling him to watch his head and that he will be deducting points the next time he sees a foul. Rosario mutters that his timing was good, as he is able to step into the distance where he can hit Mashiba. He plans to adjust the trajectory of his punches to be sure he is able to shoot right through him. At Mashiba's corner, Mashiba's seconds were able to stop his bleeding. The Tōhō coach tells Mashiba that Rosario is not the kind of opponent he can deal with while protecting his wound, advising him to go for it if he thinks he can do it. Mashiba gets up from his chair and walks away, struggling to thank his coach, who was unable to understand what he said. As Rosario leaves his corner, Mr. Bin wonders if Rosario sees the path to victory. In the audience, Miyata asks Sawamura if he saw what happened right before the ending gong of the last round. Sawamura answers that he did, and it is concerning.

Miyata explaining how Rosario had to resonate with Mashiba.

As the sixth round begins, suddenly, Mashiba and Rosario enter a close-range exchange where both boxers throw punches at each other that get blocked, dodged, or grazed. As the audience warn Mashiba to not get hit by a headbutt, Takamura notes that Rosario isn't aiming for a headbutt, and if it even happens, it would be an accidental headbutt. Itagaki wonders if Takamura means that Rosario switched to a more straightforward approach because he couldn't get close to Mashiba by dragging him into a rough fight. Takamura claims that he is wrong and it could be bad for Mashiba, as that distance is Rosario's turf, where if Mashiba keeps intruding, he could be hit directly. Miyata mentions how Mashiba never got on the same malicious wavelength as Rosario, so it was Rosario who had to resonate with Mashiba. While Sendō believes that there will be no more fouls, Sawamura claims that they are striking at a distance where a headbutt can land, meaning he has already got that far in. Miyata notes how despite the counter last round failing, the timing was perfect, thinking that if they keep fighting at close-range, Mashiba will eventually be hit dead-on.

Rosario landing a left hook counter on Mashiba.

As Mashiba is sending out a left-to-right combination, Rosario prepares to interrupt the middle of the combination with an attack. Rosario's attempt to hit Mashiba while he throws a one-two is unsuccessful as Rosario is hit by a right body blow. Mashiba and Rosario continues their close-ranged exchange. Sendō wonders if Mashiba knew that Rosario was aiming for a counter, and Miyata believes he did. Sawamura and Ippo notes how in this situation where Mashiba is being forced to respond in a high-pace exchange of blows, it should instead be seen as a chance. Rosario is annoyed that he is just barely unable to reach Mashiba with his fists. Rosario remembers how his life was full of constant betrayal, however, his fists were the only thing that wouldn't betray him, and they helped him get to the top. Rosario tries to hit Mashiba in the middle of his one-two again, however, Rosario is hit by a right body blow again. Rosario thinks that he was too slow, so he tries once more, trying to make his throw smaller and faster while Mashiba throws the right straight of his one-two. As Mashiba and Rosario both launch a punch at each other, Rosario's left hook counter lands on Mashiba's face, sending him down.

Mashiba getting up, wanting to show everyone how thankful he is to them.

As Rosario goes to a neutral corner while the referee counts, he is thrilled with what his two fists have done, knowing that they wouldn't betray him. He acknowledges Mashiba as his strongest opponent, but believes it is over now. Kumi and Ippo are worried about Mashiba as the audience calls out for Mashiba. Mashiba wonders what happened and why he is looking at the ceiling. Being grateful of his seconds that stopped his bleeding, and everyone who supports him, Mashiba realises that he is always one word short of telling them "thank you". As he knows that he can't say it now, he plans to show them by raising the belt in front of them. Mashiba stands up at the count of eight and puts up a fighting pose. Itagaki thinks the referee should stop the match since his damage is too deep. Takamura wonders who Itagaki is talking about. Takamura points out that ever since before the match even began, something has been accumulating all for this day. The referee continues the match.

Rosario acknowledging that boxing is fair.

As the match resumes with a minute and thirty seconds left in the sixth round, Mashiba stays in place as Rosario sluggishly walks away from his neutral corner. Rosario feels as if the path to Mashiba is too far, feeling like his body is heavy and is unable to get any closer to Mashiba. He knows that his fists nor boxing betrayed him, deeming the latter fair. He thinks about how he got locked up for something stupid, which made him miss out on his training and weight control. Rosario believes if someone submerges themselves in arrogance, they will get properly punished. He thinks that boxing is as fair as it gets, and he is the one who betrayed it. He notes how his stamina hit rock bottom due to rapid weight loss and lack of training and his legs are cramping up due to dehydration. He believes that the amount of training Mashiba has been accumulating over the years and months prior to this match, and Mashiba using his sincere fists, caused the right body blows to eat right through him. Rosario sees Mashiba as a pure boxer.

Mashiba landing a Chopping Right on Rosario.

Mashiba starts throwing Flicker Jabs at Rosario, who is trying to get close to the challenger. While blocking the barrage, Rosario regrets letting Mashiba catch his breath, however, he can feel himself regaining strength, being able to move his feet forward again. After focusing on breathing, Rosario hardens his block and rushes forward, slipping past Mashiba's Flicker Jabs and makes his way to Mashiba. Rosario believes a brawl will be good enough to take down Mashiba, wanting to win and start over with no betrayals, not wanting to return to an unfair world. Mashiba and Rosario have a close-range exchange of blows where both boxer block and dodge each other's punches. Mr. Bin is shocked that Mashiba isn't at his limit yet and is able to keep up and in-fight with Rosario in the state that he's in. Mashiba feels as if his past experiences with his previous opponents gave him nourishment for his growth and supported him. The Tōhō coach believes the heated spar Mashiba had with Ippo led him to where he is in this match. As the close-range exchange continues, Rosario blocks his body when he sees Mashiba getting ready to throw a right body blow. Much to Rosario's shock, Mashiba raises his right fist and throws down a Chopping Right. As Rosario was unable to react in time, Mashiba lands his Chopping Right on Rosario's face, sending him down.

Ippo notices that Mashiba was only throwing right body blows up until now, so Rosario wasn't thinking about a Chopping Right happening. He remembers that it is the tactic that Kimura used, thinking that everything Mashiba has experienced has been nourishment for his growth. Rosario regains consciousness at the count of four and begins getting up. At the count of six he puts up his fighting pose and feels pain everywhere on his body, as well as noticing that his stamina has reach the bottom. Rosario wishes to stay longer in this time of fairness, and stick with Mashiba to the end. At the referee's signal, the sixth round continues. Mashiba goes on the offence, landing a left on Rosario's face. As Rosario is unsteady, Mashiba tries to throw a right, however, their left legs collide, causing Mashiba to trip and fall. While the audience thinks that Rosario tripped Mashiba on purpose, Ippo knows that both boxers aren't quite on steady footing, so it wasn't on purpose. Sawamura remembers Miyata losing a similar way against Mashiba, thinking that it is karma. Sendō calls out for Mashiba to cut off from the cycle of karma. After Mashiba gets up from the slip, both boxers throw a left. Mashiba is the one to land his left, hitting Rosario's face and sending him stumbling to the ropes. The referee gets in-between them as the sixth round ends.

Rosario's face swollen after the sixth round.

As Rosario gets to his corner, Mr. Bin is shocked by how swollen his face is. In Mashiba's corner, Mashiba struggles in his attempt to thank his seconds while the Tōhō coach advises him to not talk and to focus on breathing instead. As both boxers get up to leave their corners, Rosario tells Mr. Bin that he will definitely be coming back to Japan, while Mashiba, wanting to make up for the fact that he is unable to thank his seconds, tells the Tōhō coach that he will give him the belt to make up for it.

Mashiba smiling towards Kumi before leaving his neutral corner — Mashiba smiling before leaving his neutral corner.

In the seventh round, after hitting each other in a dual exchange, Mashiba and Rosario have a close-range exchange where both boxers hit each other without dodging due to them being at their limits. Ippo leads the audience to cheer for Mashiba. After they both take many punches, Rosario falls down. Waiting at the neutral corner, Mashiba is irritated that Rosario is still moving. He then notices Ippo and Kumi together in the audience. As Mashiba stands at a neutral corner looking at Ippo and Kumi in the audience, Ippo points at Rosario, who has gotten up from his down to let Mashiba know. However, Mashiba continues to stare at the two in the audience, remembering how he has said many times to Kumi to bring home a man who is stronger than him or else he wouldn't accept him, lamenting that she chose "that" as her first man to bring home, as he would only approve of someone stronger than him. As his thoughts focus on the "stronger" part, Mashiba's eyes, lose their hostile glare and soften while congratulating Kumi for her choice, thus approving of Ippo. Mashiba advances towards Rosario amongst loud cheers of support. As Kumi watches her brother, she thinks how she doesn't like boxing, but witnessing all the support he's getting from the public makes her proud of him. Mashiba remembers how he rented their small apartment with the intention to make her happy and give her a life with no worries, and vows to become the world champion.

Mashiba landing a left uppercut on Rosario.

Mashiba assails Rosario and pierces his guard landing a brutal right on his face. As he falls, Rosario determines he has no strength left to fight, but before falling he intends to do one final thing. Rosario, planning to come back to Japan to face Mashiba again, begins throwing a left as Mashiba throws a right. While both boxers are throwing their punches, Rosario's right foot knocks Mashiba's left foot, and he leans forward slightly, causing Mashiba's attack to miss and Rosario's to land, hitting Mashiba's face. Ippo thinks that their legs getting tangled wasn't on purpose, as it was just that Rosario was forcing himself to throw the punch while being unsteady. Mashiba steps back, then throws a left uppercut while leaning back, landing a direct hit on Rosario.

Hanging on with one arm on the ropes, Rosario plans to train hard and come back to Japan, leaving his belt with Mashiba until then. Mashiba prepares to throw a Chopping Right at Rosario. As Mashiba launches his Chopping Right, he thinks about how he wants Kumi to not worry anymore and go through her life with a smile, as well as send her off with a smile. Mashiba throws his Chopping Right, however, his fist just barely misses the defenseless Rosario's face. The Tōhō coach frantically gets in the ring as Mashiba falls over, catching him before he falls. Rosario is shocked as the referee signals the end to the match with Rosario as the winner, defending his WBC world lightweight title.

Rosario vowing to return to Japan as he leaves the ring.

The audience is silent as Mashiba is carried out of the ring in a stretcher. Ippo has Kumi follow him to Mashiba's waiting room as they will let her in since she is a family member. Sendō feels as if Mashiba would have won if they didn't knock legs near the end. Sawamura doesn't agree, believing it to be karma, and that purification is what happened to Mashiba, though he admits that the price was steep. In the ring, Mr. Bin is dissatisfied by the audience not applauding the winner. Rosario tells his seconds that he will definitely be coming back to Japan. Sendō begins leaving before noticing Miyata is still sitting down and staring at the ring. Sendō asks if something is wrong, however, Miyata continues to silently stare at the ring.

Takamura claiming that the stronger one won.

Outside of the Yokohama Arena, the Kamogawa gym boxers discuss the match. Kimura comments how Mashiba was unconscious just like him. Itagaki wonders if it was karma, however, Takamura disagrees, believing that it was merit, and that the stronger one won in the end. Kimura asks Ippo why he didn't go with Kumi, and Ippo claims that only his family and employer could go in his waiting room. Ippo adds that Mashiba didn't regain consciousness in his waiting room and was escorted to the hospital.

Judgement Day's Aftermath[]

Aoki telling Ippo about what Tomiko said about Mashiba.

The next day, Ippo leads Taihei and Kintarō with their roadwork as his two students' pro test is coming up. As the group pauses to shadowbox, Ippo thinks how Mashiba and Rosario's match reminded him of the responsibility of being a second. Ippo thinks that knowing a boxer's physical and emotional state is difficult, wondering if he is ready to bear that responsibility. When Ippo goes to the Kamogawa gym, Aoki asks if he has heard anything from Kumi since he heard something from Tomiko. Ippo wonders if something happened to Mashiba. Aoki has Ippo follow him to the Kamogawa gym's rooftop to talk. Aoki explains how Tomiko rushed to the hospital Mashiba is being kept at after hearing details from Kumi. Aoki gives Ippo a note with information of where the hospital is and suggests to ask Tomiko about everything himself. As Ippo rushes out of the the gym, Kimura gives him his wallet with money in it so he can get a cab. Itagaki tells him that he will cover the morning shift at the Makunouchi Fishing Boat and even the next day if Ippo needs it off.

Ippo being told by Tomiko that Kumi can't help but associate him with boxing.

Ippo takes a cab to the YokoYoko Integrated Hospital where Mashiba is. Ippo learns from Tomiko that Mashiba's external injuries will take a month to heal, and that there is fear that there is damage to his brain and cervical vertebrae. He also learns that Mashiba is still unconscious. Tomiko tells Ippo that there are things that they will not know until he regains consciousness. Seeing Kumi in the lobby looking down, Ippo wishes to stay until Mashiba opens his eyes, however, Tomiko tells him he can go home as she will let him know immediately when he regains consciousnesses. Tomiko notes that Kumi didn't reach out to him because boxing might have stolen her only relative, so she doesn't want to see nor think about it, and that there is no way she can separate Ippo from boxing. Saddened, Ippo leaves the hospital and sits outside until the next morning.

Kamogawa talking to Ippo about a second's highest priority.

When Ippo goes back to the Kamogawa gym, he talks to Kamogawa about Mashiba. Ippo tells Kamogawa that while he was only thinking about Mashiba winning or losing, Kumi was only worried about him the whole match, wondering how he is supposed to confront boxing now. Kamogawa claims that a second's highest priority is to make sure their fighter makes it home safely, however, he also wants them to win no matter what, a feeling that gets stronger the more he grows closer to the fighter. Kamogawa believes that seeing a fighter surpass their limits is a thing of beauty. Ippo disagrees, thinking that if they are going past their limits, he should stop them. Kamogawa agrees, however, when he looks into the eyes of someone determined to go through to the end, he wonders if Ippo will not waver at all. Kamogawa thinks that anyone involved in the boxing world will encounter that problem and that he doesn't have a confident answer to Ippo's question. Kamogawa tells Ippo that all he can do is wait and pray for the news that Mashiba is safe and sound.

Trivia[]

The kanji on the match poster of "Judgement Day" is "断罪 (Danzai)", meaning the conviction (of a crime) or decapitation (as a punishment for a crime).
The match poster displays the Latin cross in the middle.

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